Female athlete of the year: Lily Posternak, York

York senior Lily Posternak, posing with her second consecutive Female Athlete of the Year award, will start summer classes at Duke University in June before joining the field hockey team in August.

What do you do with two personalized snowboards? Especially when you don’t snowboard?

“I asked myself the same question,” said Lily Posternak, a senior at York High. “I really don’t know. I guess I’ll just hang them next to each other.”

OTHER FINALISTS

• Emily Esposito, Gorham

• Abby Hamilton, Yarmouth

• Ally Turner, Messalonskee

• Caitlin Tycz, Brunswick

Posternak earned her second snowboard earlier this month when she was recognized as the Varsity Maine Female Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive year.

She was a two-sport athlete at York – a center midfielder on a Wildcats team that won three consecutive Class B state field hockey championships and a starting guard on the basketball team.

“It’s such an honor,” said Posternak. “I’m so grateful. I mean … I put in the work and everything so it’s nice to be recognized for it … but winning (the honor) wasn’t the most important thing for me. It’s working my hardest and trying to be the best player I can be for the love of the game.”

Posternak certainly will be remembered as one of the best high school field hockey players Maine has produced. She led York to a 71-1 record and three Class B state championships in four years while setting school records for goals (88) and assists (57).

“She’s had quite a career,” said Barb Marois, the former U.S. Olympic field hockey player who coaches at York. “She stepped right in like she had been there all along. I’m sure there was still some learning she had to go through. In her later years people would game plan for her and she had to learn to deal with it. It can be distracting. It can be frustrating. She had to find ways to be effective.”

Lily Posternak of York controls the ball and attempts to advance it while defended by Miranda Gagne of Winslow during the Class B state final at Orono.

The lone loss in her four years came in the 2013 Class B state championship game, 1-0 to Nokomis. York would win 54 consecutive games, with Posternak scoring two goals – including the game-winner with 3:22 remaining – in this year’s 2-1 championship game win over Belfast.

Posternak recently returned from Germany where she was a member of the U.S. U-19 women’s national team and will next play at Duke University. The U.S. went 0-3 on the tour – losing 4-2 to Belgium, 3-1 to Germany and 2-0 to Belgium – but Posternak said, “I was able to take so much from it.”

“It’s the best preparation I could ask for,” said Posternak. “All those girls play Division I … It’s just a faster pace than what I play around here. The skill level is higher. You have to think faster, have a higher game sense. Every phase of the game is elevated.”

She will leave for Duke on July 3 to begin summer classes, then join the Blue Devils’ field hockey program in August. Duke was ranked No. 1 in the nation last year and lost in the NCAA quarterfinals.

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